It had seemed so easy when Giles announced at breakfast that he needed to borrow the car and go into town to get some new blades for his razor.

Of course, nothing in the life of Slayer or Watcher is simple. Thus it was that Buffy and Giles found themselves part of a family expedition to town.

First Trevor had asked to go along so he could get some guitar strings at the music shop. Then Lucy had said she wanted to do some shopping in town herself. At last Dawn had piped up that she really needed to go along, too.

"What for, Dawn?" Buffy demanded. "Where could you possibly need to go?"

"Um...the same place Giles is going, I guess"

"Why? What do you need?"

The girl went red in the face and repeated that she needed to go along.

"What for?"

"Buffy.."

"No. You're not going if all you want to do is tag along"

"But I really need to go. There's something I have to get"

"What? What do you need?"

"I need some Kotex, okay?" Dawn blurted out.

In a flash, the girl had run out of the room. Buffy groaned and hid her face in her hands.

"I suppose you'll have to get those razor blades, after all, Uncle Rupert," Trevor smirked at him.

The lad seemed unfazed by the withering glare Giles shot him.

*****

"Can't you just pick something?"

"I'm trying. I can't tell which ones are most like the ones I use at home"

Giles stuffed his hand into his pocket and shifted uncomfortably. Again.

"Perhaps you could get several kinds and decide which to actually use later"

"And have the sales guy think I'm hemorrhaging here? Please. But you could go get what you wanted. You don't have to stand here while I figure it out"

"No, no. I already got my razor blades"

Giles held out the package to prove his point. Dawn rolled her eyes at him.

"Why does everybody think I'm a dumb kid? I know why you really wanted to come here"

"Oh, and why is that?" Giles asked evenly, certain that he didn't want to hear the answer.

"You want to have sex with Buffy, but you need condoms, right?"

"Dawn...what your sister and I.."

"Yeah, yeah, I got it. It's none of my business 'cause I'm just a stupid little kid"

"As a matter of fact, I was going to say it isn't your business because it's an intensely private matter, despite Anya's insistence that all our personal lives be a matter of public record. You are neither stupid, nor a child"

"Oh"

"What Buffy and I do in private is our business and ours alone"

"Okay, I get it. Is the lecture over?"

"Not quite," he said. "Dawn, I know that this is a big change for you. I should have asked before: are you okay with this?"

The girl considered for a moment. Finally, she turned to Giles and looked him in the eye.

"Buffy's really happy. This is sorta weird, but if it makes her glad to be alive again, I'm okay with it"

She turned back to the shelves.

"Besides," she added. "I kind of missed you"

Giles smiled softly at the back of Dawn's head.

"I kind of missed you, too. I'll be right back. Don't move"

As Giles retreated down the aisle, Dawn allowed herself to smile after him. She was going to have so much fun making life hard for him when he got home.

*****

"Now what do you think of this one?"

Lucy held up a frothy confection of white silk and lace. Buffy eyed it critically.

"It's pretty, but sorta...pouffy. And not to be rude, but I think it might be a little small for you"

"Oh, it's not for me. It's for you"

"Me?"

"If you like it. If not, we'll find you something else"

"I couldn't ask you.."

"You didn't. I want to do this. To welcome you to the family"

"You buy fancy lingerie for everyone who stays for Christmas?"

"No. Only for the ones who make Rupert smile. In other words, this is just for you"

"You've already done so much. I mean, you let Dawn and me stay in your house, and you gave me the room next to Giles'. And you didn't even mind that we showed up with no warning or Christmas presents, or anything. How can I accept this, too?"

"Quietly, and without a lot of fuss. Now, you said this was too...pouffy, was it? Let's see if we can't find something a bit more to your taste. What of this?"

Buffy fingered the pale blue satin slip with its black lace trim. She felt strange taking so much from Giles' sister, but it was awfully pretty.

"Go ahead, Buffy. Try it on"

It took only a brief mental struggle for temptation to win out.

"Okay. I'll try it. Thanks, Lucy. Has anyone ever told you you're like a fairy godmother?"

*****

Giles turned to his snickering companion.

"What is it now, Dawn?"

"Nothing. It's just...well...that's a pretty skanky combination of stuff we're getting"

"*We* are not getting anything. You're getting yours, and I'm getting mine"

"Except I don't have any English money. So I guess you get to buy my stuff, too"

Giles came to a halt.

"And the reason you neglected to mention this before would be...?" he demanded.

"I didn't really think about it. Buffy has all the cash. How was I supposed to know your sister would drag her off clothes shopping? Like Buffy needs more clothes, anyway"

Giles looked at Dawn's package in distress.

"Well I'm not buying...those!"

"That's what you think. You might as well get used to it. You'll have to do it for Buffy sometimes, too"

"Buffy is quite old enough to buy her own....supplies"

"Yeah, that's what Riley said. She still sent him out in the middle of the night for tampons"

"I'm not Riley"

"You're Buffy's boyfriend"

"Yes, but I'm not whipped"

"Not yet, maybe"

"I am not going to that counter with...those"

"I need them. What am I gonna do?"

Giles sighed and pulled out his wallet. He handed Dawn a ten pound note.

"You may keep the change. Get yourself some sweets or something"

"Really? Thanks, Giles!"

"That's perfectly all right"

Dawn smiled at him.

"You know something, Giles? You're way smarter than Riley ever was"

She headed for the counter as Giles smiled smugly after her.

"I thought that went without saying"

*****

Part Three

Notes and Disclaimers with Part One

That night, Giles took his time preparing for bed. He made sure there were fresh sheets on the bed and candles scattered strategically about the room. He had to chuckle at the idea of Buffy arriving in this haven of romance wearing her tartan pajama pants and one of those tiny singlets that left a tantalizing strip of tummy exposed to his admiring gaze. No doubt she would complain that she didn't fit the scene in such ordinary clothes, but he felt certain he could reassure her on that score.

As for himself, he knew his blue striped pajama pants weren't up to the setting, but that didn't matter terribly to him. After all, he probably wouldn't be wearing them very long.

The very thought made him stir.

"Not yet, old boy," he told himself. "Plenty of time for that once she's actually here"

He pulled his robe tighter and went to light the candles. Seconds after he'd blown out the match, he heard a shy knock on the door that connected his room to Buffy's. With a final glance around the room and a quick hand to smooth down his hair, he hurried over, took a deep breath, and opened the door.

For several seconds, Giles stood transfixed. At last he found his voice.

"Oh my. Buffy, you look beautiful"

"You like?" she asked with a smile as she twirled in her new finery.

"Very much, indeed"

He took her hands and held her at arm's length, drinking in the sight of her. The white cotton of her gown was so fine as to be nearly transparent, and was trimmed in crocheted lace. The gossamer fine matching negligee was equal parts demure and enticing. The entire outfit was simple, yet detailed with tiny tucks and touches of pale blue ribbon. Giles slid his fingers up her arms and down her body to encircle her waist as he admired her lithe form in the innocently seductive outfit.

"I take it this is what you and Lucy were up to today?"

"You have no idea what a great sister you have"

"I could tell you the same thing"

"Tell me about it some other time, okay?"

"I think the topic can be safely shelved for the moment"

He crushed her to his chest and kissed her passionately. Buffy returned the caress with equal fervor, her deceptively tiny hands working themselves through his hair as he lifted her off the floor.

When they finally pulled back for air, Buffy laughed against Giles' neck.

"What's so funny, love?"

"Somebody's not so patient anymore"

"I think I've been more than patient"

"So you're unwrapping your present for sure tonight?"

In lieu of an answer, he slid her down his body, letting her feel how she affected him as she went. He smiled as her feet hit the floor and she continued to rub herself against him. She groaned when he pressed himself more firmly against her.

"I'll unwrap you if you unwrap me"

"I think a deal could be reached," she told him with mock seriousness.

With that, her hands went to the belt of his robe. Giles was surprised to find himself nearly trembling with anticipation. Buffy looked up at him and bit her lip. His belt was still tied.

"I don't know why I feel so nervous. It's not like I've never done this before," she puzzled.

Giles caressed her cheek softly.

"Believe it or not, I'm nervous, too. So much has changed so quickly for us"

"And this is the big change. Point of no return"

"It's not too late to stop, if that's what you want"

Buffy smiled at him serenely and undid his belt.

"It's way too late to stop"

Giles was slightly surprised when, instead of slipping his robe off completely, Buffy simply embraced him. She fitted her arms around him underneath the velour and rested her head against his sternum, nestling her soft cheek in the dark honey colored hair of his chest. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pressed his cheek to the top of her head.

"You feel nice," she told him. "Solid. And fuzzy"

He chuckled as he pulled her tighter still.

"I don't believe anyone has ever described me as 'fuzzy' before"

"Well, I'm not used to it. And you are. But it's sorta nice. It's softer than it looks"

"I'm so glad you approve," he said dryly.

Buffy merely giggled and reached down to squeeze his rump.

"And that's really solid," she teased.

"Due to a great deal of jogging, and frolicking, and jumping. Most of it at your demand, I might add"

"See? I'm good for you" She looked up at him. "And you're really great for me"

Giles bent and kissed her deeply again. Buffy reached up at last and pushed Giles' robe off his shoulders and down his arms. He let it slip off, then moved his hands to the sash at Buffy's waist. She looked up at him, eyes alight with desire and trust, as he untied the ribbon and gently removed her negligee.

As soon as the cloth hit the floor, Giles reached down and lifted Buffy into his arms. He kissed her again and again as he carried her to the bed and gently laid her down. He lay down next to her and ran his hands over her arms, her throat, her face, following his fingers with his lips. Buffy moaned softly and kissed him back, her fingers treading through the curls on his chest. When her finger scraped accidentally against Giles' nipple, he made a harsh sound deep in his throat and his hips thrust at hers involuntarily.

"Ooh, sorry. I didn't mean to.." she began to apologize.

"Do it again," he whispered. "Please"

"Really? You liked it?"

"Very much"

Hesitantly, Buffy reached for the red brown bud and flicked her finger across it again. Giles groaned in response and pulled Buffy closer, ravaging her mouth with his. She could feel his hard length twitch against her thigh. Somehow she couldn't repress a giggle.

Giles looked at her, aggrieved.

"What's so funny?"

"You. I mean, I didn't know guys liked that"

"Different guys like different things, and I happen to like that very much, indeed"

"I can tell," she said with humor. "I thought only girls liked that. Riley.."

He pressed a finger gently to her lips.

"Buffy, there are only two people in this bed tonight; you and I. I'd rather like to keep it that way, if you don't mind"

"Okay, but it was a comparison you were going to like"

"Then perhaps you can make it another day. For now, I don't want to think about the past, or old lovers, or even the future"

"So what do you want to think about?"

"Pleasing you"

"Doing pretty good at that, so far," she smiled. "Why don't you do it some more?"

He reached out to trail his fingertips down her cheek.

"I love you, Buffy"

"I love you, too"

This time his kiss was soft and sweet; a promise rather than a demand. Buffy returned it with all her heart. Soon their kisses spiraled out of control. Their tongues mingled and danced, their hands explored the previously uncharted regions of one another. Buffy felt the desire pooling between her thighs as Giles' callused hands cupped her breasts through the thin fabric of her nightgown.

She arched to him, humming in pleasure, then gasped as his lips closed over one of the tight rosebuds. His tongue flickered lightly over her nipple repeatedly, quickly followed by a light scraping of his teeth across the sensitized flesh.

"Oh, God! Giles!"

"Yes, Summers?" he murmured wickedly.

She tried to glare at him, but he chose that moment to move his caresses to her other nipple and the moment was lost. She held his head to her bosom and groaned instead.

Moments later, Giles lifted his head, and brought his hand to the first in the row of tiny pearl buttons that held Buffy's gown closed. He held her eyes with his, silently asking permission. Her smile was all the assent he needed. His large fingers fumbled at first, but soon got the trick of undoing the tiny closures.

When he'd unfastened them all, Giles parted the fabric and simply looked at Buffy for a moment. At last he took her hand and helped her to sit up. He slid the straps from her shoulders and allowed the gown to pool around her hips as he held her, bare chest to bare chest.

"You're trembling," he whispered in Buffy's ear.

"So are you"

"I've never seen anything so beautiful before"

It was his matter of fact tone that touched Buffy the most. Her eyes welled up with tears for the umpteenth time on her trip.

"Hey, hey," Giles soothed her as he rubbed her back. "I thought we'd agreed you were going to stop crying when you come to bed with me"

"Then stop saying stuff like that so I know you mean it"

"You'd prefer a silent lover?" he quipped.

Something in the way he said it brought out Buffy's wicked side. She gave him an almost feral glance.

"No. Just...incoherent, maybe"

She gave him a light shove so he lay on his back. Giles grinned up at her, his eyes bright with anticipation. Buffy felt a thrill go through her as she realized he was content to let her take charge. She dried her eyes, and stood, allowing the nightgown to fall unheeded to the floor. Giles' eyes raked up and down her nude body. His appreciation was clear. She decided to play a bit.

Part Four

Notes and Disclaimers with Part One

Buffy crawled back onto the bed, hovering over Giles where he lay. She leaned down to kiss him, carefully keeping her weight from pressing on his obvious erection. He groaned and tried to pull her close enough to rub himself against her. She pulled slightly away and dropped the barest kiss on the tip of his nose.

"In a minute," she told him.

"You tease," he murmured, obviously pleased with the discovery.

She moved up Giles' body until her breasts hung directly in front of his mouth. He took the hint and began to suckle first one, then the other nipple. Buffy gasped at the difference in the sensation from this position. She felt powerful, yet completely exposed at the same time. It was a strange feeling, but one she decided she liked.

When she felt Giles' hands stroke her inner thighs, she whimpered. Again and again he touched the sensitive flesh, his fingertips barely brushing up against the hairs that hid her sex from him, yet never quite reaching her core.

All the while he was teasing her, Giles nibbled and tugged at her nipples with his lips and tongue. He smiled against her breast when he felt her begin to rock toward his fingers, trying to get him to touch her where she wanted it most. Instead, he stilled his hands and slid his body down the bed until his feet remained on the edge only because he'd drawn his knees up so far. When he reached the position he wanted, he moved his hands to cup Buffy's ass cheeks, and lowered her to his face.

Buffy stiffened when she realized what Giles was doing. A wave of panic washed over her even as she allowed him to do what he wanted. This was new to her, and a little confusing. Then she felt Giles' tongue slide up her thigh, licking up the moisture that had already seeped from her. She heard him groan as he turned his attention to cleaning her other thigh. She began to relax.

Then Giles gave a long, slow lick to her sex, gently parting her nether lips. Buffy gasped and leaned forward to grasp the headboard. Nothing had ever felt like that before.

Giles smiled even as he intensified his tender assault on the complicated folds before him. He groaned in delight. Buffy was wet and delicious and clearly enjoying herself. He gave himself over to the feast.

Buffy cried out when Giles' tongue flickered across the tiny bud of her clitoris. She ground herself against his face, hungry for the sensation that had startled her mere moments before. She was rewarded with a fierce series of short licks across the hard nubbin. Her breath came in quick, shallow pants as the pleasure coursed through her body. Her body tensed and her voice seemed caught in her throat for an endless moment before she shouted her release.

At her cry, Giles redoubled his efforts. He could feel the spasms against his tongue, and it drove him wild with desire. He thrust his tongue into Buffy, drinking her essence even as he sustained her pleasure. He kept it up until Buffy put one hand to his head and began to pull away. With a final kiss to her clit, he let her roll off him and slid back up so he could take her in his arms.

"What was that?" she breathed.

"Oral sex," he teased. "Hadn't you ever...?"

She looked up at Giles and smiled even through her blushes.

"I have so been sleeping with the wrong men"

"Until now, yes"

"Until now," she agreed.

She snuggled deeper into Giles' arms as he bent to kiss her lips. at the last moment, he pulled back and fished a dark pubic hair off his tongue.

"The one downside of the exercise," he mused.

"I guess I could always shave or something," Buffy giggled.

"Don't you bloody dare," Giles growled back. "At that point I'd feel obliged to buy you a Girl Scout uniform, and I'll have quite enough people accusing me of being a dirty old man as it is without handing them ammunition"

"But you're not. Dirty. Or old. Okay, you're a man, but that's the only part that's true. You're clean and sorta middle aged"

She was worried for a moment that Giles might take offense, but he just laughed and hugged her tightly.

"And you, my love, are quite, quite mad"

"Well, I'm pretty crazy for you, anyway"

She pulled him close for a kiss, which quickly grew in intensity. They rolled across the bed, touching and teasing one another. The room was filled with at least as many giggles as moans. Buffy had never had a really playful lover before. She decided she liked it. It freed her to do things she'd always wanted to try, but had never quite dared to.

When she blew a raspberry against Giles' belly, he laughed and returned the favor against her shoulder. When she nibbled his earlobe, he groaned and begged her to do it again. When she went to kiss his toes, she found his feet were far too ticklish to allow that as erotic play, but decided the fact was well worth squirreling away for future punishments.

At last the moans outstripped the giggles and Giles, tired of waiting for help, discarded his pajama pants. He lay back on the bed, his cock standing tall and rigid against his belly. Buffy took him in hand, regarding him with curiosity as well as desire.

"I thought you said you weren't all that big. Who have you been comparing yourself to? Seabiscuit?"

"I said it wasn't gigantic. I never said it wasn't big"

"Hairsplitter"

"More of a hairspitter, earlier"

"I stand by my word"

Buffy effectively ended the conversation when she stroked her hand up and down his erection. She uncovered the sensitive head and leaned down to lick it gently. Giles groaned and thrust his hips slightly. Buffy smiled and nibbled her way up and down his turgid shaft, sliding her hands under his buttocks for more control. She nuzzled her face in his scrotal sac. She swallowed as much of his cock as she could fit in her mouth. She delicately licked the precum from the head with the tip of her tongue.

Soon Giles was writhing nearly out of control below her. His head thrashed back and forth against the pillow as he begged her to finish him off. Buffy let him slide from her mouth and stretched out to hold him.

"Shhh, not yet. I want you inside me when you do that"

She rubbed his chest soothingly and dropped kisses on his face, throat and shoulders. He took her hands in his and kissed them fervently.

"What's that about?" Buffy asked with a giggle.

"You. I've missed you so, and now you're here and you're mine. And you're truly my Buffy again; the one who never fails to amaze me"

"Stop that. I'll turn into a waterfall again"

"And we can't have that, can we? Now what can I do to distract you? Perhaps this?"

He grabbed her playfully and mock wrestled her to the bed.

"I think I know what you want to do. Great minds really do think alike"

Giles leaned down and kissed her soundly before turning to the nightstand and grabbing a foil packet.

"Would you like to do the honors, or shall I?" he asked her.

"You do it," Buffy decided. "And I'll watch your technique"

Giles tried and utterly failed to glare at Buffy. She laughed merrily at him. After a moment, Giles flashed a grin back. Then he turned to his task. He opened the packet and rolled the condom onto himself. Buffy watched in anticipation. As soon as it was completely on, she pulled her knees up and spread her arms to invite him in.

Kissing Buffy soundly, yet gently, Giles took the invitation. He filled her slowly, drawing out the pleasure for both of them. Once he was nestled inside her, he lay still a moment, allowing Buffy to accustom herself to his thick length. He kissed her brow softly.

"No worries?"

She smiled up at him serenely.

"Not a one"

With that, she moved her hands to his hips and encouraged him to begin thrusting. She kept perfect time with him as they rocked together. Warm kisses punctuated their coupling, along with soft laughter and heartfelt groans of pleasure.

Giles whispered loving words to Buffy as he thrust into her; words of devotion and commitment. He stroked her hair as they made love. Buffy had not felt so warm and protected, nor so alive, in years. She opened herself to him, body and soul.

Eventually, their needs grew more urgent, and the rocking grew faster. There were fewer words and more groans. Fewer, but more intense kisses.

Buffy was the first to go over the edge. Giles kissed her hard to keep her screams from disturbing the rest of the house. He exerted every ounce of control he had to allow Buffy her full pleasure before he followed her. As soon as she'd finished spasming around his cock, Giles let go completely. He thrust deeper and harder than ever into Buffy. His shallow pants turned to soft whimpers and finally a harsh cry of release. At the last moment, Buffy joined him with one more orgasm.

As they came down from their high, there was a knock on the door.

"Rupert? Is everything quite all right in there?"

Before Giles could draw breath to answer, he heard Lucy telling Simon off for disturbing her brother. As soon as the two voices disappeared down the corridor, Buffy and Giles burst into laughter. They rolled as one to their sides and embraced warmly. With a final kiss, Giles pulled out and disposed of the condom, then returned to Buffy's waiting arms. He pulled the bedclothes over them both and tucked them warmly around his lover.

"Comfortable?" he asked her.

"The comfortablest," she assured him, snuggling closer into his arms. "And the glowiest, too. You?"

"I'd say there is a distinct glow"

"I think this is the you I like best," Buffy murmured sleepily.

"Sweaty and mussed?"

"Well, that, too," she giggled. "But mainly relaxed and happy and funny. Not to mention sappy as hell. Who'd have thunk my crusty Watcher was such a marshmallow?"

"I rather think I like this you, as well"

"'Cause I've got no clothes on and I smell like you?"

"That, too," he agreed, "but mainly because you're safe and happy"

"See? Marshmallow"

"Guilty as charged, I'm afraid"

"I love you, marshmallow guy"

"I love you too, Buffy"

"So did you like your present? 'Cause I sure liked mine"

"I did indeed"

"Good"

Giles had nearly drifted off to sleep when he heard Buffy mutter.

"You can open it again anytime I'm awake"

THE END